The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

Like the mob mentality recently seen in the US, the story shows that village life can be dangerous. In the story, every year, the village chooses one person to be stoned to death to ensure crop growth and a good harvest. From this, one can construe that there can be safety in keeping one's distance from others. There is safety in anonymity, in being absent from community events. And sometimes, there is danger in the following of tradition. Witness current events!

I learned from an early age that there is danger in being different.

At school, if you don't fit in, you are made to feel like an outcast.

If you are different from those in power, you will become a target. You might as well have the slip of paper with the spot on it. Just hand it over. Stoned you will be. And not in a good way.

And the fun doesn't stop there. If you are diligent and become knowledgeable in your field, you will face the wrath of superiors who are less so. Narcissism is rampant. And, any good narcissist knows that all threats, real or perceived, must be wiped out! Or at least ostracized. Whew! The fun never stops!

My home town (read, big city) was known for its serial killers. As a result, I learned at an early age to keep out of arms reach of strangers. If someone means you harm, this is an important safety tip. They have to catch you before they can do you harm.

I learned this so well that, to this day, I will cross the street to keep my distance from others whenever possible. In the era of Covid, this habit has come in handy.

The lesson here is that if you want to live a happy, healthy, pain-free life, it is best to avoid people, for the most part. But as anyone who has lived at all knows, life is pain, and there is no escaping it. So, you might as well mix it up and take your chances. Still, keeping your distance from strangers remains an important safety tip. And navigating the world through reading is infinitely safer than actually navigating the world!